Change of Terms

Edward Lazarus had this excellent article on Findlaw. Like our new film, Quiet Revolution, Lazarus exposes how ridiculous -- and utterly meaningless -- conservative derision of so-called "activist" judges and court decisions has become. Noting, for example, that they now call a decision "activist" even when a court defers to the will of the people's elected representative. Yet Lazarus, again like the film, concedes how politically effective this malarkey is. So he exhorts progressives to come up with our own buzz words for articulating a positive vision of the law -- a counter to the facile, but also effective, "strict constructionism" of the right. His opening bid? "Faithful constructionists". Lazarus says the label suggests a jurisprudence loyal to the text, meaning, animating purpose and history (including precedents) of the constitution. This article is a must read. And the film, if we do say so, is definately a must see!